Wild Blue Yonder

An Out-of-Work Gal Considers Her Opportunities

About Me

What began here as an online journal chronicling my progress as I pursued a variety of financial goals has morphed into a blog devoted to the concerns and challenges of the unemployed.

A communicator by profession, I cannot sit on my hands, even while temporarily out of work. What better subject to delve into than one I am personally experiencing, along with 15.4 million other Americans?

Personal finance issues and strategies for stretching a dollar will surely top the list, but I also plan to adopt a more holistic approach by taking on any aspect of the jobless experience that I think will be of interest to readers.

As always, I welcome your thoughts and feedback.

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“Fiscal fitness” can be a challenge, whether you have a steady paycheck or more erratic income. Maintaining financially sound personal finances requires discipline, stamina for the long run and an unwavering focus on what’s important.

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907 and Counting

December 21st, 2009 at 07:07 pm

I was browsing Linked In this morning, scanning postings in various groups I belong to, including the Connecticut Job Openings group. There was a note posted several months ago that's still drawing replies, 907 at last count. It's an invitation to job-hunters to provide a brief profile of themselves, their geographic location and the kind of job they're seeking.

Confirming what we already know, the recession has stolen jobs from a widely diverse group of workers, from newly minted college grads to veterans of their industries, from those just trying to gain a leg hold that could somehow morph into a real career to senior-level managers hoping to replace a six-figure salary.

Here's a sampling of who's looking for work:

- An accounts payable specialist in central Florida
- An EMMY award-wining videographer from Denver
- A laboratory life scientist in Washington, D.C.
- A media consultant in Atlanta
- A senior construction manager in San Antonio
- A mechanical engineer in East Texas
- A trilingual paralegal in Atlanta
- An MBA student willing to relocate "anywhere in the world" for an entry-level management position
- A petrophysicist from Houston
- An interior designer from San Diego
- A medical salesman from the upper Midwest
- A finance manager in North Carolina
- A publications assistant seeking work in Washington, DC, Chicago or Seattle

For some, the status of American jobs is an abstract concept built around the latest unemployment figures. According to November data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Michigan's 14.7% unemployment is the highest in the nation, while North Dakota has the lowest unemployment at 4.1%.

In the Wall Street Journal's long-running Laid Off and Looking blog, highly educated MBAs cope with depression, remind themselves not to take their spouse's support for granted, wonder how to overcome job anxiety during the holidays and consider ways to bypass the enforced anonymity of the online job application.

A New York Times poll of 708 jobless individuals reported December 14 that:

* More than half of unemployed Americans have borrowed money from family or friends
* More than half cut back on healthcare because they were out of work
* Almost half suffered from depression or anxiety
* 55% suffered from insomnia
* Nearly half said their financial troubles were so severe they feared they would fall out of their social class
* 40% said they had moved or were thinking of moving to another part of the country to find a job
* More than two-thirds considered or are considering a career change

Chances are, you know at least one unemployed person, if not more. We know the job market will improve with time, but for some of those living in the present, their immediate prospects appear grim. So the next time you see a jobless person, give 'em a hug.

Petrophysics (petro is Latin for "rock" and physics is the study of nature) is the study of the physical and chemical properties that describe the occurrence and behavior of rocks, soils and fluids [1]. Petrophysics mainly studies reservoirs of resources, including ore deposits and oil or natural gas reservoirs. Petrophysicists in the oil and gas industry typically are employed in helping the engineers and other geoscientists understand the rock properties of the reservoir. Petrophysicists evaluate the reservoir rock properties by employing well log measurements, in which a string of measurement tools are inserted in the borehole, core measurements, in which rock samples are retrieved from subsurface, and sometimes seismic measurements, and combining them with geology and geophysics.

Unemployed petrophysicists or no, I would say that it has to stink to have an Emmy on your mantel and not be earning a paycheck. Selling medical equipment or insurance or doing accounts payable stuff would seem to lead to regular job opportunities normally, but this economy has everything in upheaval...
Jerry